Tantasqua board puts transgender issue on back burner

Friday

Mar 29, 2013 at 8:00 AMMar 29, 2013 at 10:38 PM

By Craig S. Semon, TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

STURBRIDGE — The Tantasqua Regional School Committee put the kibosh on its subcommittee's motion seeking the state Department of Secondary and Elementary Education to "review and revise" its guidance document on transgender and gender nonconforming students.

Wednesday night, Tantasqua Regional School Committee member and legislative subcommittee Chairman William J. Gillmeister made a motion stating the DESE's guidance document appears not to be in line with the legislative intent of "An Act Relative to Gender Identity" (Chapter 199 of the Acts of 2011).

In his motion (which the legislative subcommittee favored in a 4-0 vote two weeks earlier), Mr. Gillmeister was looking for the school committee to ask the district's state representatives and senator to have the DESE review and revise the guidance document so it is accordance with the legislative intent.

Addressing the school committee, Mr. Gillmeister said the legislative subcommittee does not believe the DESE's guidance document is consistent with what the law says.

"Gender-identifying students may use whatever sex-segregated facilities he or she chooses depending on the gender with which he or she identifies. And, that is, anatomical males may use the girls' room or the girls' locker room. Anatomical females may use the boys room or the boys locker room," Mr. Gillmeister explained. "The "Act Relative for Gender Identity" contains no provisions for this because those provisions were purposely removed by the legislature before it was passed."

Tantasqua Regional School Committee member and bylaw and policy subcommittee Chairman William J. Haggerty said that he could favor a motion that is "truly intended to be an inquiry" but not "a disguised effort" to get the school district into a "contentious public debate" on transgender rights.

"The motion as presented to us this evening for our support at the school committee seems to have predetermined that the guidelines, in general, are inconsistent with the law," Mr. Haggerty said. "I have difficulty supporting that motion tonight, based on my review of the documents and my own personal conviction."

School Committee member Daniel Valcour argued that the DESE guidance document is merely a guideline and not the law.

"What we are compeled to do is to be in compliance with the law. The superintendent has ensured us that Tantasqua is currently in compliance with the law," Mr. Valcour said. "Therefore, a document that compels us to do nothing about a law that we are in compliance with is irrelevant in the schools. So there is no value added in taking any action on it."

In addition, Mr. Valcour said you have to consider transgender students and their families.

"Transgender students live under intense social and personal pressure beyond the comprehension of the vast majority of the population," Mr. Valcour said. "There is no benefit. There is no reward in making this motion and there is a potential for very real harm and risk for vulnerable students because it sends a corrosive message."

Mr. Valcour made a motion to postponed Mr. Gillmeister's motion indefinitely and end discussion. His motion won 10-5. The four legislative subcommittee members (Mr. Gillmeister, James P. Ehrhard, James A. Cooke and Laurence Mandell) and school committee Gary Galonek voting against.